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Canada to invest $378m in chemicals management plan

The Government of Canada will invest over C$490m ($378m) in its chemicals management plan (CMP) over the next five years.

The CMP is designed to be a comprehensive and integrated strategy for identifying and taking action on potentially harmful chemical substances.

Announced by the minister of environment and climate change Catherine McKenna, along with the minister of health, Jane Philpott, the funds will be used to complete the next phase of the CMP programme, which helps reduce the risks posed by chemicals to Canadians and the environment.

"The government noted that though chemical substances provide benefits, they could also have harmful effects on human health."

The government noted that though chemical substances provide benefits, they could also have harmful effects on human health and the environment if not managed well.

In the last decade, the CMP has assessed around 2,750 chemicals in Canada, including a wide range of substances such as stain repellents, flame retardants and bisphenol.

So far, C$800m ($611m) has been invested in the CMP.

Philpott said: "Canadians expect to be able to trust that the chemicals in the products they use are safe and won't harm them or the environment.

"This funding will enable us to continue our sound science-based chemicals management approach, which has put Canada at the forefront in this area."

Recently, Canada, along with the US had identified eight substances as chemicals of mutual concern under the Canada-US Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement.

The identified chemicals are in the Great Lakes, located in northeastern North America, on the Canada-US border, because of human activities.